N.S. Bienstock, Inc. is a large television

talent agency Talent has two principal meanings: * Talent (measurement), an ancient unit of mass and value * Talent (skill), a group of aptitudes useful for some activities; talents may refer to aptitudes themselves or to possessors of those talents Talent may ...

in the United States, representing more than 600 television personalities. Ranked among the Top 10 of TV's most powerful, the group represents clients ranging from

Dan Rather Daniel Irvin Rather Jr. (; born October 31, 1931) is an American journalist, commentator, and former national evening news anchor. Rather began his career in Texas, becoming a national name after his reporting saved thousands of lives during Hurr ...

and

Chris Matthews Christopher John Matthews (born December 17, 1945) is an American political commentator, retired talk show host, and author. Matthews hosted his weeknight hour-long talk show, ''Hardball with Chris Matthews'', on America's Talking and later on M ...

Anderson Cooper Anderson Hays Cooper (born June 3, 1967) is an American broadcast journalist and political commentator from the Vanderbilt family. He is the primary anchor of the CNN news broadcast show ''Anderson Cooper 360°''. In addition to his duties at C ...

and Bill O'Reilly. Bienstock is a specialized agency, with most assets devoted to news and reality-based programming.

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

claims the company has a "virtual monopoly on the news biz's biggest stars" and the president of MSNBC told the New York Times that, ''They have a disproportionate share of America's news talent.

United Talent Agency United Talent Agency (UTA) is a global talent agency based in Beverly Hills, California. Established in 1991, it represents artists and other professionals across the entertainment industry. , the company has more than 1,400 global employees. U ...

acquired N.S. Bienstock on 22nd Jan 2014."

History

The company began in the 1940s as the small, New York City life insurance business of Nate Bienstock, whose client list included a number of journalists, including

Walter Cronkite Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the ''CBS Evening News'' for 19 years (1962–1981). During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the mo ...

, Charles Collingwood and

Eric Sevareid Arnold Eric Sevareid (November 26, 1912 – July 9, 1992) was an American author and CBS news journalist from 1939 to 1977. He was one of a group of elite war correspondents who were hired by CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow and nicknamed " Murrow's ...

. He sold a policy to the author John Steinbeck, who had Richard Leibner's father, Sol, as an accountant. Mr. Bienstock invited Sol Leibner into his business in 1964 and eventually sold out to him. At the time, TV news was taking off, and Bienstock's newspaper and news agency clients were in demand at the networks. They asked for his help as they negotiated their contracts. Richard Leibner—not long out of New York University's business school—took up that part of the business and built it. His wife and partner, Carole Cooper, whom he met on a blind date in 1962 and married in 1964, left her career as a producer of commercials to join the firm and become an agent in 1976. The firm also includes their sons, Adam and Jonathan. Leibner is the face of the company, known for beginning the trend of big news salaries in the 1980s by playing the networks against one another and getting big deals for Dan Rather and Diane Sawyer. (The two now make more than $7 million and $10 million, respectively.) In the process, he has been accused of transforming journalists into something closer to Hollywood celebrities. The agency has been at the forefront of the broadcast news business since 1964, pioneering representation of on-air and off-air talent in syndication, cable, reality television, and talk radio over the last 40+ years. The group not only represents talent, but also pitches and packages some of the most popular programs on both television and radio. The

Radio Television Digital News Association The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA, pronounced the same as " rotunda"), formerly the Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA), is a United States-based membership organization of radio, television, and online news dire ...

administers a fellowship for young professional journalists endowed by N.S. Bienstock. In 2014 N.S. Bienstock was acquired by United Talent Agency.

List of notable present and past clients

Dan Abrams Daniel Abrams (born May 20, 1966) is an American media entrepreneur, television host, legal commentator, and author. He is currently the host of the prime-time show ''Dan Abrams Live'' on NewsNation, ''On Patrol: Live'' on Reelz and ''The Dan Ab ...

Stephanie Abrams Stephanie Abrams (born October 27, 1978) is an American television meteorologist who has worked for The Weather Channel (TWC) since 2003. She currently co-hosts '' AMHQ'' with Jen Carfagno and Jim Cantore early weekday mornings. She is also empl ...

Jose Diaz-Balart Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galilean ...

Glenn Beck Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...

Ed Bradley Edward Rudolph Bradley Jr. (June 22, 1941 – November 9, 2006) was an American broadcast journalist and news anchor. He was best known for his reporting on ''60 Minutes'' and CBS News. Bradley began his journalism career as a radio news repo ...

(deceased) *

Margaret Brennan Margaret Brennan (born March 26, 1980) is an American journalist based in Washington, D.C. The current moderator of '' Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan'' on CBS News, she is also a fill-in and substitute anchor for ''CBS Evening News'', and ...

* Aaron Brown * Campbell Brown *

Juju Chang Hyunju "Juju" Chang (born September 17, 1965) is an American television journalist for ABC News, and currently serves as an anchor of ''Nightline''. She previously served as a special correspondent and fill-in anchor for ''Nightline,'' and was a ...

* Ti-Hua Chang *

Jane Clayson Jane Clayson Johnson (born April 25, 1967) is an American journalist and author. Early life and career Clayson was born in Sacramento, California, and spent most of her childhood there. She played with the Sacramento Youth Symphony and is an a ...

* Lynnette Khalfani-Cox *

Katherine Creag Katherine Creag Gafner (December 26, 1973 – February 10, 2021) was a Filipino-American television journalist. She worked for WNBC for a decade prior to her death. Before that, she worked for NY1, WTVH, and WNYW. She won several awards for her ...

(deceased) *

Phil Donahue Phillip John Donahue (born December 21, 1935) is an American media personality, writer, film producer and the creator and host of ''The Phil Donahue Show''. The television program, later known simply as ''Donahue'', was the first talk show forma ...

Howard Fineman Howard David Fineman (born November 17, 1948) is an American journalist who is global editorial director of the AOL Huffington Post Media Group. Prior to his move to Huffington Post in October 2010, he was Newsweek's chief political corresponde ...

* Jack Ford *

Michael Gargiulo Michael Thomas Gargiulo (born February 15, 1976) is a convicted American serial killer. He moved to Southern California in the 1990s and gained the nickname The Hollywood Ripper. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenc ...

Michael Gelman Michael Seth Gelman (born August 4, 1961) is the executive producer of ''Live with Kelly and Ryan''. He also occasionally takes small roles on television, appearing in two episodes of Kelly Ripa's ABC sitcom ''Hope and Faith''. He also has a Guin ...

* David Gregory * Gail Kasper *

Steve Kroft Stephen F. Kroft (born August 22, 1945) is an American retired journalist, best known as a long-time correspondent for ''60 Minutes''. Kroft's investigative reporting garnered widespread acclaim, winning him three Peabody Awards and nine Emmy a ...

Lars Larson Lars Kristopher Larson (born March 6, 1959)"Lars Kristopher Larson". ''Who's Who in the West'', 26th ed. Accessed June 17, 2013 via LexisNexis. is an American conservative talk radio show host based in Portland, Oregon. Larson worked in televis ...

Harvey Levin Harvey Robert Levin (born September 2, 1950) is an American television producer, legal analyst, celebrity reporter, and former lawyer. He is the founder of celebrity news website TMZ, and the former host of ''OBJECTified'', which aired on the Fo ...

Steve Levy Steve Levy (; born March 12, 1965) is an American journalist and sportscaster for ESPN. He is known for his work broadcasting college football, ''Monday Night Football'' and the National Hockey League. Early life and career Levy went to Jo ...

Tom Llamas Thomas Edward Llamas ( ; born July 2, 1979) is an American journalist who was the weekend anchor for '' World News Tonight'' on ABC from 2014 to 2021. Afterward, he left ABC News for rival NBC News, with his last ABC broadcast being on January 3 ...

Dave Malkoff Dave Malkoff (born March 1, 1976) is an American television journalist working for The Weather Channel. He has covered some of the most destructive hurricanes in US history. Dave has hosted more than a dozen documentaries that air on the networ ...

Jane Velez-Mitchell Jane Velez-Mitchell is a television and social media journalist and author, with specialities in vegan lifestyles, animal rights, addiction and social justice. Early life and career Born to a Puerto Rican mother and an Irish American father, Ve ...

* Natalie Morales *

Norah O'Donnell Norah Morahan O'Donnell (born January 23, 1974) is an American television journalist who is currently anchor of the ''CBS Evening News'' and a correspondent for ''60 Minutes''. She has worked with several mainstream media outlets throughout her ...

Pam Oliver Pam Oliver (born ) is an American sportscaster known for her work on the sidelines for various National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football League (NFL) games. Early life and education Oliver was born in Dallas, Texas. She att ...

Byron Pitts Byron Pitts (born October 21, 1960) is an American journalist and author, working for ABC News as co-anchor for the network's late night news program, '' Nightline''. Until March 2013, he served as a chief national correspondent for ''The CBS Eve ...

* Bill O'Reilly *

Jeff Ranieri Jeff Ranieri (born in 1978) is a Chief Meteorologist for NBC O&O station KNTV in San Jose, California. Ranieri previously reported for NBC NEWS on Early Today, and MSNBC weekday mornings & afternoons. He was also an NBC Weather Plus Meteorologist ...

John Roberts John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as the 17th chief justice of the United States since 2005. Roberts has authored the majority opinion in several landmark cases, including ''Nati ...

* Robin Roberts * Thomas Roberts *

Andy Rooney Andrew Aitken Rooney (January 14, 1919 – November 4, 2011) was an American radio and television writer who was best known for his weekly broadcast "A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney", a part of the CBS News program '' 60 Minutes'' from 1978 to 201 ...

* Melissa Russo *

Diane Sawyer Lila Diane Sawyer (; born December 22, 1945) is an American television broadcast journalist known for anchoring major programs on two networks including ''ABC World News Tonight'', '' Good Morning America'', ''20/20'', and '' Primetime'' newsmag ...

Bob Schieffer Bob Lloyd Schieffer (born February 25, 1937) is an American television journalist. He is known for his moderation of presidential debates, where he has been praised for his capability. Schieffer is one of the few journalists to have covered all f ...

Bob Simon Robert David Simon (May 29, 1941 – February 11, 2015) was an American television correspondent for CBS News. He covered crises, war, and unrest in 67 countries during his career.Gottlieb, Hooper. Shearer, Benjamin F. ed., ''Home Front Her ...

(deceased) *

Alison Stewart Alison Stewart (born July 4, 1966) is an American journalist and author. Stewart first gained widespread visibility as a political correspondent for MTV News in the 1990s. Early life and education Stewart was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. ...

John Stossel John Frank Stossel (born March 6, 1947) is an American libertarian television presenter, author, consumer journalist, and pundit. He is known for his career as a host on ABC News, Fox Business Network, and Reason TV. Stossel's style combines r ...

David Ushery David Ushery (born June 5, 1967) is an African-American television news anchor at WNBC News 4 New York, NBC’s flagship owned and operated station. An integral member of the NBC 4 New York News team, Ushery has covered many of the largest and m ...

Paula Zahn Paula Ann Zahn (; born February 24, 1956) is an American journalist and newscaster who has been an anchor at ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, and CNN. She currently produces and hosts the true crime documentary series ''On the Case with Paula Zahn'' ...

References

External links

* {{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110128190814/http://www.nsbienstock.com/ , title=N.S. Bienstock Homepage American companies established in 1964 Talent and literary agencies Companies based in New York City 1964 establishments in New York City